This popular centre's interactive exhibits are liable to bring out the mad scientist in kids and adults alike. Allow at least a couple of hours for button pushing, water squirting and knob twiddling, all of it designed to inculcate some scientific principle. Workshops delve into the mysteries of caffeine crystals or cabbage chemistry; the Planetarium runs popular hour-long shows; and upstairs there's a nightmarish assembly of pickled organs and deformed foetuses from Tartu University's collection.
Science Centre AHHAA
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
0.76 MILES
Atop Toomemägi are the ruins of a Gothic cathedral, built in the 13th century by the knights of the Livonian Order after driving the pagan Estonians from…
0.78 MILES
A treat for word nerds, design hounds and print junkies alike, this interactive museum focuses on the history of printing and paper-making. Machinery from…
1.33 MILES
This immense, low-slung, glass-clad building is arresting – both Estonians and architecture lovers purred when it opened in late 2016. The permanent…
0.56 MILES
Built as part of Tartu University in 1810, this intriguing observatory on Toomemägi is a must for fans of astronomy and the history of scientific…
21.25 MILES
Alatskivi Castle imports the Scottish Highlands into this verdant corner of Estonia – its white turrets and stepped baronial-style roofline were inspired…
21.91 MILES
This museum is spread over an 18th-century parish clerk's house and focuses on the life of rural schoolchildren in 19th-century Estonia; the schoolhouse…
25.06 MILES
According to legend, 3.5km-long, 8.5m-deep Pühajärv (Holy Lake) was formed from the tears of the mothers who lost their sons in a battle of the Kalevipoeg…
0.62 MILES
Fronted by six Doric columns, the impressive main building of Tartu University was built between 1803 and 1809. The university itself was founded in 1632…
Nearby attractions
0.47 MILES
If you've been socialising in Tartu's pubs and can't really see straight, don’t use this building to anchor your eye. Subsidence caused by the nearby…
0.5 MILES
Tartu’s main square is lined with grand buildings and echoes with the chink of glasses and plates in summer. The centrepiece is the town hall itself,…
0.53 MILES
Built between 1782 and 1789, this graceful building was designed by German architect JHB Walter, who modelled it on a typical Dutch town hall. The clear…
0.56 MILES
Built as part of Tartu University in 1810, this intriguing observatory on Toomemägi is a must for fans of astronomy and the history of scientific…
0.58 MILES
This former KGB headquarters and prison, known as the ‘Grey House’, was donated to Tartu City Museum by the family to which they were returned after the…
0.6 MILES
In 1990 this metallic monument was erected near the KGB headquarters in memory of the victims of Soviet repression; the blue cornflower is Estonia’s…
0.62 MILES
Fronted by six Doric columns, the impressive main building of Tartu University was built between 1803 and 1809. The university itself was founded in 1632…
8. Estonian Sports and Olympic Museum
0.63 MILES
Chronicling more than just Estonian Olympic excellence (although the glittering medal display serves that purpose admirably), this offbeat museum has a…
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